{"id":620164,"date":"2026-03-25T23:18:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T06:18:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/blog\/post\/human-first-ai-powered-a-leadership-blueprint-for-modern-cx"},"modified":"2026-03-25T23:18:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T06:18:16","slug":"human-first-ai-powered-a-leadership-blueprint-for-modern-cx","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/blog\/post\/human-first-ai-powered-a-leadership-blueprint-for-modern-cx","title":{"rendered":"Human-First, AI-Powered: A Leadership Blueprint for Modern CX"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Aaron Lael, Utah Department of Government Operations, Division of Technology Services, IT Architect, of the State of Utah, is a Maestro in the Genesys Orchestrators program, a distinction earned through his commitment to continuous learning and shared knowledge. He values Orchestrators as a hands-on community where Genesys customers can test ideas and solve real-world CX challenges together.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

In this article, Lael shares his perspective on leading customer experience in the AI era \u2014 offering a thoughtful, pragmatic approach to innovation in the experience economy (as told to Ginger Conlon).<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

My career has been shaped by curiosity,\u00a0credibility\u00a0and community.\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0always had a deep love of expanding my subject\u00a0matter\u00a0expertise, especially as\u00a0new technologies\u00a0emerge.<\/p>\n

I started as a contact centre agent on a help desk supporting a large fast-food organisation \u2014 everything from kitchen equipment to point-of-sale systems. Eventually, I moved into IT and then, somewhat unexpectedly, telecom. When no one wanted to take over a massive, aging Nortel PBX system, I raised my hand and said, \u201cSure. I\u2019ll learn something new.\u201d That decision opened doors, including opportunities to work on customer experience (CX) systems in the UK and eventually with solutions from Interactive Intelligence, which later became part of Genesys.<\/p>\n

About 10 years ago, I joined the State of Utah, where I\u2019ve steadily taken on more responsibility. Right now, I\u2019m exactly where I want to be. I enjoy fixing things, solving problems and making systems better \u2014 which is why the Genesys Orchestrators\u2122 program has been such a natural fit for me.<\/p>\n

The webinars, ad\u00a0hoc\u00a0sessions\u00a0and hands-on labs\u00a0available in the\u00a0program\u00a0give me a way to explore features in a low-risk environment and then bring meaningful ideas back to the state agencies I support.<\/p>\n

Just as important, the\u00a0Genesys\u00a0Orchestrators community itself has become a trusted network \u2014 a place where we can compare notes, share scripts\u00a0and work through complex problems together. That sense of shared learning and accountability matters.<\/p>\n

That perspective\u00a0has\u00a0influenced\u00a0how I think about leadership.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

Learning as a Leadership Strategy<\/h2>\n

I\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0see myself as a leader of people\u00a0so much as\u00a0a leader of ideas and technologies. Over time,\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0built credibility with the\u00a0state\u00a0agencies we support, and I use that trust to help influence better technology decisions. Often, that means slowing things down\u00a0\u2014 especially when a vendor is making big promises that\u00a0aren\u2019t\u00a0grounded in the realities of the underlying systems. Leadership, for me, comes down to trust and influence.<\/p>\n

This approach has become even more important in the age of AI.<\/p>\n

With AI adoption, there\u2019s a lot of excitement \u2014 and a lot of risk. For example, I\u2019ve had to help teams understand that automated workflows require deep integrations across systems and real organisational buy-in. Without that, AI promises quickly fall apart.<\/p>\n

Sometimes leadership is simply\u00a0about\u00a0level-setting expectations and making sure teams understand what it\u00a0actually takes\u00a0to succeed.[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

Establishing\u00a0Trust in an AI-Driven\u00a0World<\/h2>\n

My own thinking about AI has been shaped by caution as much as curiosity. Two books that influenced me early on \u2014\u00a0Automating Inequality<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Weapons of Math Destruction<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 explore how algorithms can unintentionally disenfranchise people through bias or poor design. That perspective has stayed with me.<\/p>\n

While\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0grown more open to constituent-facing AI solutions, I consistently push for systems that are measurable,\u00a0reproducible\u00a0and auditable. If an algorithm influences\u00a0crucial\u00a0decisions about benefits,\u00a0such as\u00a0food\u00a0stamps\u00a0eligibility\u00a0or\u00a0deadline\u00a0extensions for child support payments, there must be a clear, step-by-step explanation of how that decision was made. And\u00a0there needs to be\u00a0a way for people to understand and respond.<\/p>\n

In my own work, I use AI very deliberately. I see it as a development copilot \u2014 a way to mock data, generate realistic sample profiles for presentations or summarise large data sets.<\/p>\n

What I don\u2019t do is outsource judgment. When I need insight or context, I still prefer to go to the human experts within my organisation. AI supports the work, but it doesn\u2019t replace the relationships.<\/p>\n

That human focus is especially important in government CX.<\/p>\n

Our constituents and our employees are all residents of Utah. Their experiences are not abstract; they\u2019re personal. And they\u2019re directly tied to why we exist as an organisation. The goal at the State of Utah is to make sure happy, supported employees are serving people who need assistance with as little friction as possible.<\/p>\n

While self-service and automation play a role, our experience shows that satisfaction\u00a0ultimately comes\u00a0from resolving\u00a0issues\u00a0with\u00a0\u2014 or at least following\u00a0through\u00a0\u2014\u00a0a human connection.<\/p>\n

That belief reflects my own background in contact centres. I value seeing a problem through from start to finish and knowing I\u2019ve helped someone leave in a better place than when they started.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css=””]<\/p>\n

Turning Insight into Impact<\/h2>\n

What I enjoy most about\u00a0my\u00a0CX\u00a0role\u00a0today is the visibility. I work across many agencies, which gives me insight into\u00a0what\u2019s\u00a0working, what\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0and where ideas can transfer. In many ways, I act as a value-added connector \u2014 helping agencies get more from the platforms\u00a0they\u2019re\u00a0already investing in and ensuring those investments produce real outcomes.<\/p>\n

When colleagues tell us\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0the most responsive IT team\u00a0they\u2019ve\u00a0worked with, that feedback means everything. Responsiveness and accountability are the\u00a0foundations\u00a0of trust.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, I\u2019m excited for the AI space to mature. I want to see the dust settle \u2014 to see clearly where AI truly delivers value, where it can become lighter-weight and more efficient to better support sustainability, and where it provides measurable ROI. Rationalisation, not hype, is what will move AI forward in customer experience.<\/p>\n

Personally, I\u2019m revisiting fundamentals \u2014 data structures, algorithms and core programming concepts \u2014 while also evaluating emerging tools like Genesys Cloud\u2122 AI Guides as compared to traditional voicebots.<\/p>\n

Learning never stops; it just shifts focus.<\/p>\n

That brings me back to the Genesys Orchestrators program.<\/p>\n

If\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0a Genesys Cloud\u00a0customer and you want to\u00a0truly understand\u00a0the platform, I challenge you to find a better learning environment. The live and recorded\u00a0trainings, access to demos and labs, and the ability to experiment without risk are invaluable. Add\u00a0in\u00a0the gamification and the growing community, and it becomes more than a program \u2014 it becomes a shared journey of growth.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0why I keep coming back.<\/p>\n

In the AI era, leadership\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0about chasing every new tool.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0about earning trust, asking\u00a0hard questions\u00a0and making thoughtful choices \u2014 together.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Aaron Lael, Utah Department of Government Operations, Division of Technology Services, IT Architect, of the State of Utah, is a Maestro in the Genesys Orchestrators program, a distinction earned through his commitment to continuous learning and shared knowledge. He values Orchestrators as a hands-on community where Genesys customers can test ideas and solve real-world […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":880,"featured_media":619830,"template":"","tax_priority":[],"tax_blogtype":[17756],"tax_blogcategory":[15928,13117,15990,17624],"tax_contenttheme":[14902],"tax_bundle":[],"tax_contenttheme2":[16156],"tax_capability_sitewide":[16201],"tax_products_programs":[],"tax_buying_job":[16827],"tax_buyer_persona":[16919],"tax_sector":[17015],"tax_segment":[17079],"class_list":["post-620164","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tax_blogtype-genesys-en-sg","tax_blogcategory-ai-and-machine-learning-en-sg","tax_blogcategory-cloud-en-sg","tax_blogcategory-customer-highlights-en-sg","tax_blogcategory-industries-en-sg","tax_contenttheme-improve-customer-experience-en-sg","tax_contenttheme2-improve-employee-experience-en-sg","tax_capability_sitewide-ai-and-automation-en-sg","tax_buying_job-job-9-pain-disruption-management-en-sg","tax_buyer_persona-technical-en-sg","tax_sector-public-en-sg","tax_segment-enterprise-en-sg","tax_content_type-blog-en-sg"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/620164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/blog"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/880"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/620164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":620166,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/620164\/revisions\/620166"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/619830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=620164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"tax_priority","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_priority?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_blogtype","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_blogtype?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_blogcategory","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_blogcategory?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_contenttheme","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_contenttheme?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_bundle","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_bundle?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_contenttheme2","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_contenttheme2?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_capability_sitewide","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_capability_sitewide?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_products_programs","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_products_programs?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_buying_job","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_buying_job?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_buyer_persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_buyer_persona?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_sector","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_sector?post=620164"},{"taxonomy":"tax_segment","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax_segment?post=620164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}